22 Apr 2024|Noida | Amity University, Noida, Online
Webinar on “Planet vs Plastics” held at Amity on the occasion of
World Earth Day
Amity Institute of Environmental Toxicology, Safety and Management (AIETSM), Amity University Uttar Pradesh, Noida Campus, organized an insightful and informative Webinar on the theme, “Planet vs Plastics”, on the occasion of "World Earth Day". The aim of the webinar was to sensitize Faculty members, students and stakeholders about importance of sustainable development of Earth and create awareness about the hazards caused by plastic usage.
Sharing his views on the occasion, Prof. Chetan Singh Solanki, Department of Energy Science and Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, averred, “Everyone who is using energy is contributing to the ever-growing problem of climate change. Policies, tools and techniques used to stop climate change are not working and the challenge is increasing day by day. Therefore, it is the moral responsibility of each and every individual to protect the environment by conserving energy.” He called upon the students to reduce electricity consumption, through various ways such as setting the temperature of air conditioners at 27 degrees for optimal consumption of electricity and wearing unironed clothes so as to reduce coal and electricity consumption. He also requested Amity University to join his Awareness Programme, “Conservation of Energy for Viksit Bharat” through which he will be travelling to different parts of India to create awareness about the harmful effects of high energy consumption and benefits of energy conservation.
Dr. B.K. Murthy, Dean (Translational Research and Entrepreneurship Development) Science, Engineering and Technology, Amity University emphasized, “Plastic use has increased immensely in the last 30-40 years. Many programs to reduce plastic waste have been initiated by the government such as banning single-use plastic and “Waste to Wealth” Programmes. We need to create an ecosystem for eradicating plastic waste and replacing it with sustainable materials such as cloth or paper. We can identify one city and take the pledge to not use plastic in that city and one by one we can cover all parts of the country.”
Deliberating on the topic, “Space Technology for Environmental Resilience”, Dr. Khushboo Mirza, Scientist, National Remote Sensing Centre, said, “Space Technology provides valuable geospatial data, information and insights for monitoring, analysing, and managing environmental changes. It enables the observation of large-scale environmental processes and helps in identification of vulnerabilities, production of hazards, and assessment of impacts, through various tools and modules. Space Technology is applied in Environmental Monitoring, specially, in the areas of natural disaster management, land use monitoring, air and water quality monitoring, deforestation, soil erosion and land degradation.”
Explaining about “Triple Planetary Crisis in Indian Context”, Dr. Sumit Sharma, Program Officer, UNEP, opined, “India is set for more extreme heat waves, monsoons, and droughts of the world’s emissions continue on their current trajectory, Loss of lives, extreme climate events have already cost India, over $99 billion in the last 50 years. Leaving climate change unchecked could cost India US$ 35 trillion in lost economic potential over the next 50 years. India has a huge potential and can gain $11 trillion economic value by leading climate change and India has committed to reduce the carbon intensity of its economy by 45%, by 2030 and achieve net zero carbon emission by 2070.”
Dr. W. Selvamurthy, President, Amity Science Technology and Innovation Foundation said, “Each one of us must pledge to protect and express gratitude to our planet for protecting us and giving us the means to survive and live happily. On the occasion of World Earth Day, we salute all the policy makers, scientists and people from different walks of life who are committed to making the planet sustainable and are protecting mother earth. Amity University has taken a lot of steps to combat climate change by organizing various Awareness Programmes, Seminars, and Conferences to sensitise the students to work towards climate change and make the world a better place to live in.”
Welcoming the guests on this occasion, Prof. Tanu Jindal, Director, AIETSM, said, "World Earth Day" is celebrated every year on April 22 to raise environmental awareness and create consciousness around the issues that adversely affect mother nature. The theme of World Earth Day-2024 is “Planet vs Plastics” which includes a call to reduce plastic production by 60 percent by 2024 to preserve our life on this Pale Blue Dot. Every April, environmental activists from all over the world join hands to create sustainable development and offer climate solutions to minimize carbon footprint and prevent further harm to the planet’s natural resources. The deliberation by various experts will be extremely insightful for the students in protecting the environment.”